Conditional formatting is a useful Excel feature that helps highlight important information and reveal patterns in your data. By using it, you can automatically apply colors, shades, or icons to cells based on their values.
In this section, you will learn how to use conditional formatting to make your reports more visually appealing and easier to interpret.
In the previous demonstration, we saw that basic sorting and filtering can help highlight certain values using colors. However, these highlights remain static and do not update if the underlying data changes. Conditional formatting solves this problem.
By setting rules—for instance, highlighting cells where the average coverage is below 2,500—Excel will automatically update the formatting whenever the data changes.
Now, look at the table below. How many values are greater than 90?
Counting values manually can take a lot of time and may lead to errors. By applying conditional formatting to the table below, cells with values greater than 90 are automatically highlighted. This makes it easy to identify and count them in just a few seconds.
Conditional formatting is not just for simple cases—it is a powerful tool to uncover patterns and trends in your data. For example, you can automatically highlight dates that fall within the current week using distinct colors, making key information stand out.
In the next section, we will explore more advanced uses and applications of conditional formatting.
When working with multiple conditional formatting rules on the same dataset, it’s best to use the Manage Rules option and add new rules, rather than creating a new rule from scratch, which can overwrite existing rules. Conditional formatting allows you to apply gradients, 2-color or 3-color scales, and define conditions based on numbers, text, or other criteria.
Like other formatting techniques, conditional formatting serves two key purposes: improving readability and speeding up data interpretation. This ensures your reports are both clear and efficient.
When selecting colors, rules, or styles, focus on choices that enhance readability and comprehension speed—these principles apply to most formatting strategies.
In the next section, we’ll cover additional tips and tricks for using conditional formatting effectively. Vivek will also demonstrate examples of how it has helped him uncover valuable insights from datasets.
In the previous video, you learned several conditional formatting techniques, including:
- Applying colors dynamically based on cell values
- Highlighting dates with specific colors
- Formatting blank and non-blank cells
- Formatting cells with errors or without errors
In the next segment, we will explore advanced formatting techniques, including borders, text wrapping, and alignment options, to make your data presentation more professional and visually appealing.